Mowing apparatus

Abstract

A mowing apparatus for mowing stalk-like crops independently of rows and conveying the mowed crop to a draw-in-box of a chopper, including two rotating mowing rollers with rigid entrainment fingers, the mowing rollers being arranged laterally in front of the draw-in-box of the chopper, and two rotating wipe-off-rollers provided with wipe-off-fingers and cooperating with the mowing rollers by overlapping of the tip paths of the entrainment fingers and of the wipe-off-fingers, wherein the entrainment fingers are hook-shaped and inclined forward with respect to the radial direction and the wipe-off-fingers having a greater circumference velocity than the entrainment fingers.

I claim: 
     
       1. A mowing apparatus for moving stalk-like crops independently of rows and for conveying the mowed crop to a draw-in box of a chopper, comprising: rotatable mowing rollers each having a conical upwardly directed outer shape and rigid entrainment fingers which have tips which define a tip path during rotation of said mowing rollers; and   rotatable wipe-off rollers each having a conical downwardly directed outer shape and wipe-off fingers which have tips which define a tip path during rotation of said wipe-off rollers, said wipe-off rollers cooperating with said mowing rollers by an overlapping of the tip paths of said entrainment fingers and said wipe-off fingers, said conically shaped mowing rollers and wipe-off rollers being arranged so as to form a sideways inclined draw-in channel in front of the draw-in box.   
     
     
       2. Mowing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein characterized the mowing rollers are formed by at least a lower entrainment rim (11a) of larger diameter and an upper entrainment rim (11b) of smaller diameter, wherein two entrainment rims (11a, 11b) are connected by a cylinder (12) in such a way that the lower entrainment rim (11a) constitutes a support surface (13). 
     
     
       3. A mowing apparatus for mowing stalk-like crops independently of rows and conveying the mode crop to a draw-in box of a chopper, comprising: four rotatable mowing rollers arranged side-by-side in front of the draw-in box of the chopper, each of said mowing rollers having entrainment fingers with tips which define a tip path during rotation of said mowing rollers;   two rotatable wipe-off rollers each having wipe-off fingers with tips which define a tip passed during rotation of said wipe-off rollers, each of said wipe-off rollers being arranged between two of said mowing rollers so as to cooperate with said two mowing rollers by an overlapping of the tip paths of said entrainment fingers and said wipe-off fingers; and   drive means for rotating said moving rollers and said wipe-off rollers so that said wipe-off fingers have a greater circumferential velocity than said entrainment fingers.